Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

Camden, NJ … The College of New Jersey baseball team gained a split with Rutgers University-Camden on Saturday afternoon in New Jersey Athletic Conference action.
 
Entering a doubleheader on the road against the first-place team, while in the midst of a five-game losing streak, the Lions (17-13, 6-8 NJAC) took care of business in the opener and earned a critical 6-2 victory. They held a lead in the nightcap, but the Scarlet Raptors (21-9-1, 10-4 NJAC) tallied the final five runs of the contest to post a 6-3 win.
 
The Lions are now tied for sixth place in the conference standings with a 6-8 mark. Rutgers-Newark swept a pair of games from Richard Stockton College to move to 6-8 as well. William Paterson University trails by a half-game as they swept New Jersey City University to improve to 5-8-1. Ramapo College holds a half-game lead in the five-spot with a record of 6-7-1.
 
Game 1: The College of New Jersey 6  Rutgers-Camden 2
 
Senior Connor Smith (West Caldwell, NJ/James Caldwell) improved to 5-0 as the Lions snapped a five-game losing streak. A three-run seventh inning solidified the victory as Smith went eight innings, allowing just one earned run. 
 
The Lions got on top early with a run in the first and another in the third. In the opening frame, John Rizzi (Long Hill, NJ/Watchung Hills) led off with a walk and later came home on a sacrifice fly by junior Anthony Cocuzza (Absecon, NJ/St. Augustine Prep).
 
In the third, Rizzi was hit by a pitch and advanced to second on the sacrifice bunt by senior Joe Dispoto (Nutley, NJ/Nutley), his second of the game. Rizzi scored his 29^th run of the season when sophomore Garen Turner (Hainesport, NJ/Rancocas Valley) singled to right field.
 
The Scarlet Raptors shaved the lead to 2-1 with a run in the bottom of the third. Freshman Joe Brooks knocked in Joe Sigismondi with a single to right field.
 
Junior Josh Limon (Eastampton, NJ/Rancocas Valley) opened the fourth inning with a single to left field. He raced home when sophomore Matthew Facas (Florham Park/Hanover Park) doubled down the left-field line with one out. That increased the lead to 3-1.
 
An unearned run in the sixth made it a 3-2 game, but the Lions responded with three runs in the top of the seventh. Rizzi reached base for the third time leading off an inning with a single to center field. Dispoto drew a free pass and Cocuzza advanced both runners with a sacrifice bunt. Turner delivered a base hit to score Rizzi. Dispoto eventually crossed home plate off an errant throw from the catcher before sophomore Pat Roberts (Hillsborough, NJ/Hillsborough) lifted a sacrifice fly to score Turner and put TCNJ up 6-2.
 
Smith retired the side in order in the eighth and handed the ball over to junior Benito Gonzalez (Perth Amboy, NJ/Princeton) in the ninth. With runners on second and third, Gonzalez struck out Connor Hall swinging to end the game.
 
Rizzi scored three runs in the win and reached base all five times. Turner drove in a pair of runs and two hits and Facas went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
 
Game 2: Rutgers-Camden 6  The College of New Jersey 2
 
The Scarlet Raptors scored in the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth innings to come from behind and win the back-end game, 6-3. Sophomore Chris Scarlett pitched six innings and struck out five for the win and classmate Kyle Gaff tossed three scoreless innings to earn the save.
 
TCNJ picked up where it left off in game one by scoring runs in the first and second innings. They manufactured a run in the first as Rizzi led off with a walk and stole second. Dispoto moved Rizzi to third with a ground ball to the right side and Cocuzza drove a sacrifice fly to right to score the first run of the game.
 
Limon led off the second with a single and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Michael Murray (Stewartsville, NJ/Phillipsburg). Facas reached on an error and rookie Ben Varone (Marlton, NJ/Cherokee) followed with an RBI-single to plate Limon. Rizzi went the opposite way for a base hit to score Facas and the Lions held a 3-1 lead.
 
The single by Rizzi was the ninth consecutive plate appearance in which he reached base safely (including his final two at bats against Montclair State). The program record is 14 straight set by Vinnie Cino in 1988.
 
Scarlett tamed the Lions' offense over the next four innings. Rutgers-Camden tied the game in the sixth when Brett Virnelson singled to score Adam Bartholomew. Bobby Romano followed with a base hit to left field to give the Scarlet Raptors their first lead of the day.
 
An unearned run in the seventh and a two-out single off the pitcher in the eighth secured the home victory for RUC.
 
TCNJ starter Brendan Kelly (Butler, NJ/Butler) pitched six solid innings, scattering seven hits and striking out four. Freshman Ryan Duran (River Edge, NJ/River Dell) threw the final two innings for the Lions.
 
Limon was the lone TCNJ player with two hits in the game. Rizzi scored a run and crossed the plate four times in the doubleheader.
 
In the final week of the regular season, the Lions play Rowan University (10-4) twice before hosting a doubleheader with Richard Stockton College (4-10). Stockton plays Kean (10-4) in a home-and-home next week before visiting TCNJ. Rutgers-Newark has a pair of games with Rutgers-Camden before hosting William Paterson University next Saturday. Ramapo plays NJCU (3-11) twice and then visits Rutgers-Camden. WPU squares off against Montclair State (9-5) during the week before their twin-bill with the Scarlet Raiders.
 
The Lions host FDU-Florham in a non-conference match-up on Tuesday in George Ackerman Park at 3:30 p.m.